Pilot Case 3
Robotic fertilisation management for leafy vegetables in open field conditions in Italy
Location: Experimental and commercial farms in Italy
Overview
Pilot Case 3 focuses on robot-assisted fertilisation of leafy vegetables—primarily lettuce—using AI-powered systems to assess plant biomass and nutrient requirements. Equipped with RGBD and stereo cameras, robots navigate uneven fields and provide foliar nutrient applications, guided by deep-learning models and agronomic principles.
On the left, the mock-up structure equipped with advanced sensors including RGB-D cameras, a multispectral camera, LiDAR, GPS, and IMU, forming the first integrated data acquisition system. On the right, the field testing site where the setup is being trialed in real-world agricultural conditions.
Timeline
Spanning four years, the pilot starts with testbed setups and agronomic data collection, followed by ROS-based robot adaptation and AI algorithm development. Field trials will be conducted across multiple lettuce growth cycles, with strong farmer collaboration to ensure relevance.
Validation
Performance will be validated from lab to field by comparing robot-acquired data to traditional crop assessments. Key metrics include plant segmentation accuracy, yield, nutrient uptake, and soil impact, with a goal of rapid (sub-1 hour/ha) surveys.
AR Integration
Real-time crop data will populate AR-supported digital field models. These will guide operators in nutrient planning and provide interactive training scenarios focused on sustainable fertilisation.
